Modern History Of Cremation

Modern cremation history, as we know it, actually began only a little over a century ago, after years of experimentation into the development of a dependable chamber. When Professor Brunetti of Italy finally perfected his model and displayed it at the 1873 Vienna Exposition, the history of the cremation movement started almost simultaneously on both sides of the Atlantic.

In the British Isles, the movement was fostered by Queen Victoria’s surgeon, Sir Henry Thompson. Concerned with hazardous health conditions, Sir Henry and his colleagues founded the Cremation Society of England in 1874. The first crematories in Europe were built in 1878 in Woking, England and Gotha, Germany.

Meanwhile in North America, although there had been two recorded instances of cremation history before 1800, the real start began in 1876 when Dr. Julius LeMoyne built the first crematory to make ashes in Washington, Pennsylvania.

In 1884 the second crematory opened in Lancaster, Pennsylvania and, as was true of many of the early crematories, it was owned and operated by a cremation society. Other forces behind early crematory history were Protestant clergy who desired to reform burial practices and the medical profession concerned with health conditions around early cemeteries. Once again the thought that ashes was a healtier alternative to burial.

Crematories soon sprang up in Buffalo, New York, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Detroit and Los Angeles. By 1900, there were already 20 crematories in operation, and by the time that Dr. Hugo Erichsen founded the Cremation Association of America in 1913, there were 52 crematories in North America and over 10,000 cremations took place in that year.

In 1975, the name was changed to the Cremation Association of North America to be more indicative of the Read More…

Resomation® is the alternative to cremation with environmental benefits.

Resomation® is a patent pending water/alkali based environmentally beneficial alternative to burial and cremation. and is both dignified and respectful, with a number of environmental benefits. It has been developed in response to a growing desire for greater choice and increasing environmental awareness.

The Resomation® Process

A funeral involving Resomation® is exactly the same as one involving cremation until the point at which the coffin is committed from view. In Resomation® the coffin is placed into a Resomator, and instead of fire, uses a water and alkali based method – also known as alkaline hydrolysis – to break the body down chemically.

The process is normally 2-3 hours long, the same length of time as an average cremation and once complete, a sterile liquid and bone ash remain. The sterile liquid is returned to the water cycle and just like cremation the bone ash remains are placed in an urn and returned to loved ones.

Benefits of Resomation®

The introduction of Resomation@ would provide consumers with more choice in deciding how their body is taken care of after death.

Environmental research carried out by the independent consultancy Sustain – a leading carbon reduction company has shown that the substitution of Resomation® for cremation as part of a funeral will reduce that funeral’s emissions of greenhouse gases by approximately 35%.

The energy needed for the Resomation® process in the form of electricity and gas is less than one-seventh of the energy required for a cremation.

In the UK up to 16% of all mercury is estimated to be emitted from crematoria because of the fillings in teeth, Resomation® produces no airborne mercury emissions.

Sterile liquid is safely returned to the water cycle free from any traces of DNA.

The introduction of a third means of dignified disposal has the potential to ease the pressure of burial space which, in many countries, is in short supply.

A. The price will be determined by the equipment operator (Resomation Ltd does not operate the equipment but supplies it to industry operators). Similarly to cremation this will vary from country to Read More…

Looking for an environmental alternative for burial or cremation for your loved ones?

Have you considered Bio-Cremation, (not to be confused with Bio-Creation), which is marketed as Resomation in the UK.

Bio-Creation is a whole other thing. That is the process of creating a human being from scratch without the help of the Creator or the normal way of creating a new human being. I think most of it is done in a laboratory. Sounds familiar????

Bio-Cremation is exactly like regular cremation until the point where the coffin is taken away from view. At that point the coffin goes into the Bio-Cremator and using a water and alkali based method, also known as alkaline hydrolysis, the body is broken down chemically. This process normally takes 2 to 3 hours (the same length of time that a cremation would take). Once completed, a sterile liquid and bone ash remain. The sterile liquid is returned to the water cycle (I hope it’s sterile) and, as in cremation, the bone ash remains are placed in an urn and returned to loved ones.

There are benefits to Bio-Cremation. When substituted for cremation, the funeral’s emissions of greenhouse gases are reduced by 35%. And the energy needed for the Bio-Cremation process (in the form of electricity and gas, is less than one-seventh of the energy required for a cremation. In the UK, up to 16 percent of all mercury is estimated to be emitted from crematoria because of the fillings in teeth. However, Bio-Cremation produces no airborne mercury emissions. Tough luck for you people who want a free high.

The sterile liquid (so they say) is safely (so they say) returned to the water cycle free from any traces of DNA. Bio-Cremation has the potential to ease the pressure of burial space which, in many countries, is in short supply. Maybe if the wars going on in some countries were settled, there would be adequate burial space for everyone.

FYI this process is already regulated in some states in the USA through Matthews Cremation and is in the process of being regulated in others.

Well the internet provides and now cardboard caskets are no exception and now we can easily buy those online as well. Going along with that theme casket and coffin manufacturers do not want to be left out. So from economical cardboard caskets to more costly traditional caskets and including new style “green caskets” which encompass cardboard and paper caskets to bamboo and banana leaf caskets, we can now purchase these needed items without a trip to a funeral home. With a few easy clicks we can purchase our casket from the worlds largest online store Amazon.com. Wow now they truly do sell everything on Amazon.Cardboard Casket – The Artist’s Paper Craft Coffin (Brown Color)